Jon McCarthy has launched a staunch defence of his record at Chester FC but admits he heads into the final game of the season this weekend ‘under pressure’.

The Blues host Boreham Wood on Saturday (12.15pm) having all but secured their Vanarama National League status despite losing 15 of their last 20 games.

Their fine mid-season form has proved vital in keeping Chester above the bottom four, but their woeful form since the turn of the year has seen manager McCarthy come under fire from some sections of the Blues fan base, with the manner of the 5-2 humbling a Sutton United last weekend met with widespread anger among supporters.

The Chester boss believes he was never the ‘popular choice’ for manager but says he has done what was asked of him by the Blues board on meagre resources in highly competitive league.

“I’ve achieved what was asked of me this season and yet I’m going into the final game of the season and the start of next season under pressure,” said McCarthy, whose side are yet to win at home in 2017.

“Make no mistake about it, we were relegation fodder at the start of this season. We had one of the smallest budgets in the league, and actually it was the smallest budget that this football club has had since coming back to the National League. I had to put together a team that could compete and at least give us a fighting chance this season, and we have achieved safety.

“I understand that this run has been poor but we put ourselves in a position of strength with five games to go that means we are ok. We have had to contend with injuries to players like Craig Mahon, Jordan Chapell, James Akintunde and Luke George and we have, since the turn of the year, had to rely on the bare bones.

“We didn’t start the season as a play-off-chasing team in seventh. We achieved that on our own merit and we will stay in this league on our own merit.

“Let’s be honest, not many people wanted me at the start and I never really had a honeymoon period. I don’t think I was the popular choice, it was a case of cheap manager, cheap players, cheap club. I heard it all. I was sat there earlier in the season after our poor start knowing that I was a game or two from losing my job. But we turned it around and went on that run and got to as high as seventh at Christmas. That wasn’t luck.

“Unlike in previous seasons there just wasn’t the funds to bring in someone in January like other clubs did. In past years we have had lads like Matty Taylor, Matty Hughes and Oli McBurnie and this year we just couldn’t do anything. But I planned for that and accepted that was going to be the case and we managed to get through it to the point where we are safe on the final day of the season, barring something ridiculous.”

McCarthy, who was surprised at questions over his future following the loss at Sutton last weekend, says he understands the criticism due to the way the season has ended but believes it not to be a fair reflection as how the campaign as a whole has gone.

He said: “Next year we will have, hopefully, a slightly higher budget but the clubs coming up will be stronger than ever.

“I get the criticism from some fans because of the way things have panned out this year. There’s nothing I can say when you’re losing games, the only thing I can do is win football matches.

“Myself and the players, we want to finish on a high on Saturday, I think it would be a fair reflection on the season as a whole.”

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